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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. bound — certain
  5. cell — a phone
  6. mark — a trace
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. cell — in biology
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. bound — obliged
  11. field — for sport
  12. mark — a grade
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. field — farmland
  15. perch — the fish
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. field — a subject
  20. bound — tied together
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. pitch — completely

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com